Everything Has Changed
by perezkat
Summary: What happens after Barry saves his mother? Has he made the right decision? Should he stay or should he go back? Set immediately after Season 2.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: This is my own version of Flashpoint. I am new to the community and new to the world of writing fanfiction though I have read many. Please be patient with me and I hope you like where the story goes (though truth be told, I don't know where this is going). Reviews and constructive criticism welcome._

 **Disclaimer:** I don't own "The Flash", just my OC

 _ **Barry POV**_

Barry jolted awake. His head is pounding and is breathless. He looks around frantically trying to figure out where he is. He closed his eyes to try and calm down. _Where am I?!_ Then he remembered. He travelled back in time to fight Eobard Thawne and save his mom. But that doesn't explain where he is. He looked around the room again. The room looked strange and yet familiar at the same time. Like he's been there before but he can't quite remember when. He was about to get out when the door suddenly burst open.

"Oh my God! Seriously? Are you kidding me? WHY ARE YOU STILL IN BED?!" yelled a girl, with brown hair, hazel eyes and looked just a few years younger than him. He feels like he knows her yet he's sure he's never even seen her before.

"Uhh… excuse me?" Barry asked, clearly confused.

"You're supposed to take me to S.T.A.R. Labs in half an hour and you're still in bed" she said after she walked over and sat on his bed. He is racking his brain to try and remember if anything else happened after he saved his mom to no avail. By the time he looked at her, she was no longer on the bed but on the side of the room, picking up clothes from the floor.

"I can't believe you're doing this to me. You promised you would take me. I washed the dishes for a week just so you would take me! Can you please get up and put some clothes on!" she yelled as she threw some clothes at him. One of the shirts that she threw hit a picture frame that was sitting on his bedside table and toppled it over. Barry bent over to pick it up and saw himself smiling happily next to her with his arm around her.

"Uhh… are you my girlfriend?" he asked shyly but almost regretted it after he saw the look on her face.

"Eww no! Are you high? Because if you are, I'm gonna have to tell mom and dad"

"Wait.. what… I'm not on drugs!" Barry exclaimed. He is more confused than ever.

"Okay you know what? I'm going to play this little stupid game of yours because I know it'll be the only way I'll get you out of bed and in the shower" she said exasperated. "I'm Gemma Louise Allen. I am your dearest sister and I'm going to be so mad at you if you don't get up now and get ready and take me to S.T.A.R. Labs. We only have 25 minutes left. Please don't do this to me." Before Barry could even give her a reply, she was already out the door and looking deflated.

Barry got up from his bed and started pacing back and forth. _Sister?_ He didn't have a sister. Did he? What was happening to him? He wanted to sit down and think this through but he felt a pang of guilt after he remembered the look she gave him when she left the room. He had let her down and he didn't like this feeling. He decided that he will go through with what she needs first and deal with his issues later. Just then, he realised he hadn't even checked if he still had his powers. He closed his eyes and with one swift movement, he was in the shower already. _Yes! At least he's still got his powers_.

While he was in the shower, another realisation dawned on him. Gemma said that if he was on drugs then she was going to have to tell mom and dad. _Mom and Dad… MOM AND DAD?!_ He used his speed to get ready in no time and was about to open the door but hesitated. Barry was nervous. _Did it really work? Did I really save my mom? And my dad?_ He was scared to find out but he remembered his promise that he wouldn't let Gemma down today so he went downstairs to find out.

When he reached the bottom step, he saw Gemma standing by the fireplace, and next to her were the two people he had wanted to see the most. He stood there just staring at them, with tears welling up in his eyes.

"Mom? Dad?"

 **Gemma POV**

When she heard his footsteps reach the landing, she turned around to see Barry standing there, in shock, at the sight of them.

"Mom? Dad?" he said barely a whisper to them

Mom walked up to him and gave him a hug. "Hey Barry" she said as she smiled at him.

"Hey Slugger!"

"Dad…" Barry said as he ran up to hug dad.

"I told you he was acting weird." Gemma wasn't sure what was going on with her brother but at least she's glad that he's finally gotten himself ready and can now take her to S.T.A.R. Labs. She has an interview there today and it is her dream to work there. Barry has known this for a long time and has helped her with her studies and even offered to take her there for her interview but she wasn't sure what was going on with him today. He seems different and out of place. She was starting to get worried. But she'll have to sort that out tonight. "Can we please go now?" she asked Barry impatiently. "Yes. Let's go." They said bye to their parents and headed out the door.

 **Barry POV**

On the way to the car, Barry noticed Gemma go straight to the passenger seat so he then realised that he would have to drive. He started to panic as in the other timeline, he didn't know how to drive. _Well…. Here goes nothing._ He was able to start the car safely and started to make their way to S.T.A.R. Labs. Barry looked around while he was driving and noticed that nothing has much changed and he was glad. Maybe he hadn't changed much of the timeline after all. He was particularly anxious to see Cisco and Caitlin. Would they recognise him? Would they know what is happening? He had so many questions running through his head when he noticed that his sister hasn't said a word since the car ride.

"Are you okay Gemma?" he asked. She looked at him strangely for a while before she answered.

"I should ask you if you're okay. You've been acting weird all morning and you haven't called me Gemma since I told your high school girlfriend Becky Cooper that you didn't like her anymore and then told Iris that you were in love with her."

"You did what?! What… Why would you do that?!" he gaped at her.

"Well you were too chicken to do it." He laughed and shook his head. Trust him to be exactly the same in this timeline. Same shy self that would never admit his feelings to the person he truly loves.

"Okay so if I don't call you Gemma, then what do I call you normally?"

"You call me Lou. Always" she said pinching the bridge of her nose. "Barry, I love you and I'm really worried about you. I am. But you know that this is the most important day of my life and I don't know why you're making this hard for me?" His heart broke as she said that. He's been acting selfish all morning as he was trying to figure out what was happening to him that he didn't even stop to realise how his actions will affect other people's lives in this timeline. He looked at her and could see how down she was. _How can I make this right?_ He thought for a moment and decided that he will be less selfish at least till tonight. He'll have to go through today and not assume anything and try not to let anyone else down. But he needs help. Maybe if he told her a bit about what is happening then maybe she can help him.

"I'm sorry Lou. It's just… something has happened. I didn't mean to bring you into the middle of it, especially today. So I promise I'll be on my best behaviour and we'll talk about it tonight. Okay? For now, you just relax there and think about your interview. We're almost there" he said smiling at her.

"Okay" she said finally smiling back at him. As they approached their destination, he noticed how grand S.T.A.R. Labs looked in this timeline. _Maybe the particle accelerator hasn't exploded yet?_

"We're here! Just pull in to the car park and I'll get out to meet the interviewers there by the door" she said unable to keep still in her chair. He could tell she was excited for this. "I'll walk you to your interviewers and wish you luck" Barry beamed at her. She just nodded at him. As they parked the car and started approaching the two interviewers, Barry started to realise that they looked familiar.

"Cisco? Caitlin?"


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Sorry this update took so long. I am mother to a lovely 10 month old girl and I just didn't realise it would be so hard to find the time to write the next chapter of the story. It also doesn't help, that I still don't fully know where this story is going. But I am learning and I am making progress._

 _Also, I changed the way I was writing my story as my partner pointed out that I'm doing POV's of each character but I'm not doing them in first person in the character. So I tried to do it the way he stated and hopefully the quality of the story telling didn't go down. Enjoy! And please let me know what you think. Thanks!_

 **Lou POV**

"Cisco? Caitlin?" Barry asked the two figures standing by the door.

I grabbed his shirt straight away and pulled him towards me so he could hear me whisper "Barry, what are you doing?!" I asked him, almost pleading with my voice. "You said you'd be on your best behaviour?"

"Yes… Can we help you?" Cisco replied before Barry could answer.

"Uhh… this is my sister Gemma Louise Allen. She's here for an interview today" Barry replied nervously.

"Yeah, okay. That's cool. But how did you know who we were?" Cisco asked.

Wait… how did my brother know their names? I look at Barry forcefully and hope that he can find an excuse to get out of this one or I am seriously thinking of disowning him as a brother. He's shifting on his feet. Oh no… I wish someone could save me from the embarrassment about to happen.

"Oh. Ah I'm a huge science nerd so I am extremely obsessed with S.T.A.R. Labs and since my sister was going in to interview here, I thought I'd have a look at the employees that work here. I figured you two would be the ones to interview her. It was a lucky guess" Barry smiled confidently before winking at me. I almost want to punch him but I stop myself and look up at the sky, praying to God that they accept this excuse.

"Well that's good of you, Mr Allen. Though I don't think CCPD would appreciate you using their resources to dig around S.T.A.R. Labs instead of working on your cases" Caitlin replied with a smile. I stood there looking back and forth between Caitlin and my brother. I could see Cisco doing the same thing. They're both staring intently at each other like they were trying to read each other's minds. I didn't think Barry knew anyone from S.T.A.R. Labs. Why would he hide this from me?

"Um… how did you know I was working at CCPD?" my brother Barry asking the million dollar question right here.

"We also do our own research here, Mr Allen." Caitlin replied, not so convincingly I might add.

"We do?" says, Cisco incredulously. Even he isn't fooled. Something weird is going on here. And I know it has something to do with my brother. But I can't figure it out. I'll make sure to reach out to Iris later.

"Yes we do" says Caitlin and now she is staring at Cisco the way I was staring at Barry just mere moments ago. Looks like it works because Cisco just starts nodding in our direction.

"Um anyway, yes. Gemma, we were actually waiting for you to arrive. Your CV is quite outstanding so we decided to include an orientation with your interview…" Cisco starts talking and I can barely understand what he said after that because as soon as he said the first part, I've become giddy with excitement. I'm almost sure I'm smiling like an idiot.

"Cisco, lead the way. Barry, you'll also be joining us on the tour. After you, Gemma" gestures Caitlin towards the door. I stay rooted where I'm standing as I try to comprehend what she just said to me. Why does Barry have to come? This is getting weirder by the second. I look at Barry and he just smiles at me. He holds me by my arms to try and make me feel like everything is okay but I'm not sure. I start walking towards Cisco and I'm sure I see him whisper something to Caitlin before I reach him. I look back at Barry, and he smiles and nods at me, willing me to go ahead. I decide to go ahead with this for now and ask him questions later.

As soon as I step into the door I hear Barry say, "You know who I am"

 **Barry POV**

"You know who I am," I say to Caitlin when I know Cisco and Lou are out of earshot.

I say it as a statement and not as a question. I don't know why, but my gut tells me that Caitlin knows. Caitlin knows which Barry I am and why I'm here. And as I stand here looking at her and waiting for her to answer, I have this feeling that I know, that she's my Caitlin. I mean, from my original timeline, and not this current one. I don't know how and I don't know why, but I just know that it's her. She looks at me and starts to relax her shoulders. Before I know it, she jumped towards me and had started hugging me. And my instincts follow and I hug her back. Before I can say anything, she's removed herself from me and started to drag me inside S.T.A.R. Labs to follow where Cisco and Lou have gone.

"Nice of you guys to finally join us" Cisco says sarcastically. God I've missed Cisco. I wish I could give him a hug too, but I have a feeling that he doesn't recognise me so I better not. I look over to Lou, and she looks at me disappointingly. I try to go up to her to reassure her but Caitlin stops me in my tracks. I look back at Lou and she shakes her head and walks off with Cisco. I look back at Caitlin waiting for her to explain what she had just done.

"I know who you are" she simply says.

"What? What do you mean?" I try to ask her calmly even though my heart is beating a hundred miles an hour. And she smiles at me.

"I know who you are, Barry Allen. The Flash." She whispers the last part, making sure no one can hear. She pulls me closer to her and we start walking behind Cisco and Lou. We pretend that we are there for the tour even though there's clearly something we have to discuss.

"There's no way. H-How… How is this possible?" I try to keep my voice quiet as I ask her this. As much as my gut tells me that she's telling the truth, there's no way of knowing for sure. It's just impossible for her to be there. She's not a speedster and she can't travel through time like he can.

"That night, after we defeated Zoom, after you spoke with Iris on the porch… I tried to stop you, Barry" she says like it's supposed to explain everything. If anything, I am more confused than ever. I don't remember seeing Caitlin at the porch before I left. All I remember was saying goodbye to Iris and leaving. I guess she could see the confusion on my face because she starts to explain again.

"That night, after your talk with Iris, I saw that she was upset. I tried to go up to her, but she just smiled and waved me off and told me that I should say goodbye. When she said that, I understood what you were planning on doing. I ran out of the house and when I got to the porch I saw you looking towards the distance. I tried to call out your name but you couldn't hear me. You were probably too busy thinking about how fast you had to go. I saw you get on your stance and you were about to run, I didn't know what else to do, Barry" she stops and looks at me with tears welling in her eyes.

"What did you do, Caitlin?" I asked her gently. She stares at the floor, her hair covering her face and she starts shifting her feet. "Caitlin…." I try and get her to answer.

"I jumped at you from behind to try and hold you down. But I guess I wasn't strong enough to stop you."

"You WHAT?!" I couldn't stop myself from yelling out.

"Is everything okay, Dr Garrick?" one of the employees walking past asked her in concern. Even Cisco and Lou have now stopped walking and gaped at us.

"Everything's fine. Mr Allen here just got a bit over excited over S.T.A.R. Labs" Caitlin answers her. I try to smile at the girl to sell this lie. She seemed to have bought it because she nodded and went on her way. Even Cisco and Lou have turned around and started walking again.

"Yes. Yes I did. And next thing I know, we were in front of your old house. I could see the flashes of red and yellow and I knew you were fighting in there to save your mom. And then for some reason I blacked out" she finishes explaining as we keep walking towards Cisco and Lou. Before I could ask if that was even possible, we round a corner and we almost bump into them. They've stopped to look at two portraits on the wall and while Cisco explains away about who these people are, I could only stand in shock. And, in rage.

"Eobard Thawne owns S.T.A.R. Labs?! With Harrison Wells?" I say through gritted teeth at Caitlin. She flinches at the tone of my voice and grabs my hand. She's trying to calm me down. Or herself. I can't tell which at this point. I came back to this time to defeat Eobard Thawne and thought I'd succeeded when I woke up to my parents and even having a sister. Now I'm staring at his face on this wall. And he's still walking around. Alive.

"That's not the worst part…" Caitlin starts to say.

"There's something worse than this?!" I whisper to her furiously while gesturing at the potrait. She could only nod.

"Didn't you hear what that girl called me? I'm not Dr Snow here in this timeline. I'm Dr GARRICK, Barry" she said emphasising the surname. And then it clicked in his head like clockwork. I started to pace back and forth, shaking my head and all Caitlin could do was stare.

"It's not possible, Cait… You saw the speed force take him away" I said trying to convince her. But also myself at this point. Pleading that she wasn't telling the truth.

"But it is, Barry. Trust me. This is coming from the one who woke up in his arms this morning…" Caitlin said with tears in her eyes and fear in her voice.

My heart sinks.


End file.
